Throughout Advent I will be posting sections from my weekly devotions in SURVIVING THE BIBLE: A Devotional for the Church Year 2018. Find the rest of this week’s devotional and for each week throughout the 2018 Church Year in the book (now available everywhere). First Reading: Ruth 3:1-5; 4:13-17 Naomi, Ruth’s mother-in-law, wants Ruth to have more protection, so she directs her to sleep with Boaz, who then marries her. They have a son whom they name Obed, who is the father… Read more

Throughout Advent I will be posting sections from my weekly devotions in SURVIVING THE BIBLE: A Devotional for the Church Year 2018. Find the rest of this week’s devotional and for each week throughout the 2018 Church Year in the book (now available everywhere). Are We There Yet? Texts In Brief (My dog ate my Bible!) First Reading: Isaiah 40:1-11 Isaiah offers comforting words to the people of Israel, assuring them that though their lives have been hard, they won’t continue to… Read more

Throughout Advent I will be posting sections from my weekly devotions in SURVIVING THE BIBLE: A Devotional for the Church Year 2018. Find the rest of this week’s devotional and for each week throughout the 2018 Church Year in the book (now available everywhere). First Reading: Isaiah 64:1–9 The prophet, on behalf of the exiled people of Jerusalem, is nostalgic for the time when God has intervened on behalf of the Jews. He also is lamenting the apparent absence of God from the exiles, which,… Read more

The following is excerpted from SURVIVING THE BIBLE by Christian Piatt. With the beginning of Advent comes also the start of a new Church year. As we wait for Hope, Peace, Joy and Love to be re-born, it’s also a time to revisit our Biblical roots and sit in a space of waiting, contemplation and practice. The Bible clearly says…. We’ve all heard this phrase, usually in the middle of some ideological combat about “values.” And yet, it seems like… Read more

This week on the Homebrewed CultureCast: Our nation is founded on the principle of placing central in our value system, “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” But sometimes one negatively affects the other. Also, being “pro life” can mean so much more than most people assume. We discuss Diana Butler Bass’ recent claim that maybe church has reached a necessary end of its life cycle and what she says we should do. Then in the interview, activist, author and… Read more

Welcome to the world of the eternal campaign. Even by the time the Trump White House wrapped up its first 100 days, democrats scoured their ranks for viable congressional candidates. Republicans, worried about losing their majority, girded themselves for campaign battles across the map in 2018. But regardless of who claims a congressional majority during the midterms, they will face a public wary of their motivations and competency. It’s hard to imagine fighting so hard for a job where only about… Read more

Salon Magazine asked a poignant question recently after a spate of domestic mass shootings: why is it always the white guy? While middle class males, in particular, are supposed to have more power and privilege than anyone else on the whole in America, so why are so many of us so filled with rage and violence? We explore the phenomenon of the “white male shooter” after the recent Las Vegas massacre, along with other related questions like: is Donald Trump… Read more

About one in four Americans identify as a “None,” which means, when asked about their religious affiliation, they claim “none of the above.” And yet so many of them claim some form of spirituality, or at least a hunger for exploring the possibility of God. In his new move, “Becoming Truly Human,” Nathan Andrew Jacobs follows several young adult Nones through their own journeys in, and out of, organized religion. One of them even ends up back in church, but… Read more

Hurricane Harvey was a “1,000-year storm” that will have an impact on the Houston area for years or even decades. But what does such disaster tell us about God? More important, perhaps, is what it tell us about ourselves and how we understand God. Megachurch Pastor and Prosperity Gospel Preacher Joel Osteen commits a “Sin of Sodom” which he has neither confessed nor asked for forgiveness. What is Church’s role when the waters rise around us? Sometimes we submit to… Read more